Grain-polishing machine.



H. l. PIEPGRAS. GRAIN POLISHING MACHINE, APPLICATION FILED ocr. I. IsIs.

Patnted Sept. 18, 1.917.

WIT/IIESSES ATTORNEYS to provide for spouting the discharged grain i l""wv ENT Ulti l liUltlt HERMAN J'. PIEGBAS, OFCALDWELL, IDAHO.

GRAIN-POLISHING MACHINE.

asienta i Appli-cation filed October 7, 1916. Serial No 124,247.

To all whom z'zf may concern.' l

Be it known that I, HERMAN J. Piiirenns, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Caldwell, in the county of Canyon and State of Idaho, have invented a new and Improved Grain-Polishing Machine, of which the following is a full, clear, `and exact description; j

General objects of my inventionA are to provide a machine having the maximum efficiency in thoroughly `and `expeditiously. effecting the polishing of the grain; to provide 'a machine in which the outlet for the grain is in the form of a stand pipe whereby to oppose to the advancing grain in the `polishing cylinder the pressure of a column of grain at the outlet; to provide for vary-V ing the height of thestaiid pipe outlet and' thus vary the head or pressure opposing the advance of the grain toward the outlet; and

in a manner to-insure the effective separa tion of the dust,v smut, etc., from the polished grain through the medium of an air current.

More specific objects of theinvention are to provide an eii'ective agitatiiig, polishing and conveying means and anefective means to force the polished grain through the out` let against the head or pressure produced by the column of escaping grain, as well as to simplify the construction of machines of this character.-

" Other objects of the invention and the advantages ofthe preferred embodiment of the inventionwill appear as the `description proceeds. j Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification in which similar reference charac-1 ters indicate corresponding parts in all the views. j D U Figure 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of agrain-polishing machine embodying my invention;

` Fig. Bis a side elevation of the conveyi ing and agitating means in the polishing cylinder;

Fig. 4 is a detail in transverse section of one of the devices provided on the feed shaft for breaking up the mass ofl advanc-` ing grain between :the Seperate tights of the feed lscrew.

Y j* of the cylinder 10. Fig. 2v is a transverse vertical sectionon In carrying out my invention in accordance with the illustrated example, a polishing cylinderI 10 is provided mounted on any suitable supporting structure. The support ing structure may comprise standards l1 to which the cylinder 1() is secured in any suitable manner as by brackets 12 and bolts 13.

Axially of the fixed cylinder 10 is disposed a shaft 11i having suitable `bearings in the standards 11 or otherwise, and provided with any approved driving means such as a pulley 15 to be belted to any suitable source of power (not shown). The material is adapted to be fed by any suitable means to inlets 16 provided at each end of the cylinder l0. 0n the shaft 14 are spiral flights 17 constituting a'feed screw and these are i'eversely disposed for advancing the grain from the respective inlets 16 toward a cen-4 tral discharge outlet 18 inthe cylinder 10.

In order that the head or pressure of a column of grain `at `theoutlet 18 may be opposed to the advancing grain in the cyl inder l0, the outlet 18 is produced in the top of the cylinder and there is provided in connection with the latter at said outlet a standpipe'lQ. For varying the height of thestand pipe and therefore-the head of the column of grain, the upper portion 2O of the stand pipe is made telescoping and adapted to be secured at any adjusted height by a set screw 21 orequivalent means.

Thosel flights 17 adjacent to'the outlet 1Sl are contiguous and the effective planes there` of lconverge to constitute in effect a wedge so that the grain will be crowded to the cen` ter ofthe cylinder, but instead of being clogged and `massed,the collecting grain will` be continuously turned by the contiguous revolving flights. the adjacent ends of the said contiguous iiights being at opposite sides of the Iairis of the column of grain formed jointly by the stand pipe 19 and the center In orderto positively force thegrain upwardly into the stand pipe 19 against the pressure of the grain column a" revolving ejecting device 22 is provided on the shaft 14 of the feed screw, directly beneath the stand pipe 19 and between the contiguous central flights 17. Said ejecting device 22 advantageously may take the form as shown of al wheel with curved blades, the `free ends of which turn adjacent to the walls of the cylinder 10 so asto successively' wipel past the outlet'18.

At the bottom of the cylinder at the center a clean-out opening is Vpresented and normally closed by a plug or cap 23, suitably secured as by bolts orscrews 24C.`

The interior of the cylinder l0 is made to present aroughened polishing surface which is preferably provided by cementitious coating 25. Similarly, a roughened surface is provided on the nights 17 through themcdium of afcementitious coating 26. l

The flights 17 at each side of thecenter are non-continuous, the separate night elements being separated von the shaft 14, and in vorder to break up the continuity of the grain movement toward the center, transf verse breaking bars 27 are providedvon the shaft between the respective night elements and are preferably formed with beveled edges. y

The described construction and arrangement of the feed screw and its appurtenancesas well as-the arrangement of the inlets and outlet prevent the mere crowding of the grain from the inlets toward the outlet. The opposed contiguous nights ofthe screw and the ejecting device 22 as well as the intermediate breaking elements 27 yand the separated nights 17 coperate to eniect the maximum agitation or turning over of the grain, theresult `being that an leffective polishing is produced by the rubbing of the grains together and the Contact of the grain with the various surfaces within the cylinder.

The grain is caused to spout vertically from the upper endvof the stand pipe into any suitable housing 28 having an inclined bottom 29 onto whichv the spouted grain falls in all directions. The grainl will thus be thoroughly loosened upto readily part with the dust, smut, etc. A vertical partition 30 is provided in the housing 28 dividing the same into two chambers, and atthe bottomv of the partition *30 is a v suitable gate 31 to-'regulate the distance between the; partition and the inclined bottom v29.

E The Vbottom 29 leads Vto a drop spout .from which the grain escapesby gravity and in the said outlet spout32 an upward current of air is produced to thereby move inthe opposite direction to the falling grain. Any suitablemeans may be employed to produce `the upward air current there being conventionally indicated a fanSB in the top of the housing 2.8 at the opposite side of the l partition 30 from the stand pipe. i The Gti,

numeral .34 indicates the outlet froml the fan 83 and the numeral 35 indicates a fan `shaft, to be driven in any suitable manner,

there beingV indicated a belt pulley 36--on vsaid shaft. i

pared withthe cylinder, `so :that the Amajor 4portion of the total content of the cylinder may `be maintained filled with a mass of material to -be polished under the `innuence of the head due to the vertical stand pipe 7@ to present broad surfaces to the material for gently advancing and turning the same without producingV grinding action against the cylinder as is done by revolving drums, or the like, in close relation `to a cylinder or shell. The described construction islparticularly adapted for small grain andseeds, including alfalfa which has been treated byv the machine with marked success. The separated oppositely disposed i and convergent central nights 17, with the interposed wheel 22 having the separated blades thereon curvedin the, plane of rotationof the wheel, prevents the jamming and bruising of the grain or seed at thebase of the stand pipe, by preventing the formation ofa jammedy wedge of grain. It isto be observedV also, that the grain is spouted 4in loose form intov a closed chamber out of the influence ofthe air current to thoroughly loosen up the grain andpermit it to undergo a preliminary-separation from the dust and chan' before .passingdown -the incline29-ito the Vactive area subject to the separating airvcurrent.

Having thus described my invention I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent: f y j v 1. A polishing machine for grain and seeds, including a fiXed cylinderhaving inletsvat both sides of the center and having a central outlet at thetop, a stand pipe through which the material( passes vfrom the said outlet, a relatively smalllshaft turning in the cylinderleaving anamplei space in thccylinder to receivea Avmass of material between `the shaft and cylinder, separate individual spiral flights `on: the cylinder. `shaft and oppositely disposed ateach side of the centen-those flights adjacent tol the center being convergent but having their terminals spaced fromeach other, and ain ejector rei volving with the shaft at the said outlet between the saidjterminals, and receiving the V 'in the ,cylinderleaving an ample space inthe vcylinder to `receive a mass of Amaterial between the shaft and cylinder, separate in'd1- 125` vidual spiral nights on the cylindershaft andoppositely disposed at each side ofthe center, those nights adjacent to the center being convergentbut having their, terminals spaced from each other, and an ejector on, 1.30

the shaft between the said terminals, said ejector consisting of a wheel presenting separate blades curved in the plane of rotation of the wheel, and wiping in succession past the said outlet with the turning of the shaft.

3. In a machine of the class described, a housing having a vertical inlet and having an inclined bottom and a partition dividing the housing into separate chambers, said chambers communicating by a passage adj acent to the said bottom, a vertical discharge spout leading from the bottom of one of said chambers and receiving material from the said inclined bottom, and means to produce an upward air current through said chamber and discharge spout, the other of said chambers surrounding the said vertical inlet and receiving the material issuing therefrom, to permiiL a loosening up of the material and an initial separation of the polished grains from the dust and cha', uninfluenced by the air current in the second chamber.

4f. A polishing machine of the class olescribed, including a cylinder, having inlets at opposite sides of the center, and an outlet at the approximate center, a relatively small shaft turning in the cylinder, spiral elements on the shaft at each side of the center, there being a plurality of elements on the shaft at each side of the center and separated from each other, diametrica-lly disposed bars on the shaft at each side of the center of the respective spiral elements, said bars presenting beveled side edges, the eentral spiral elements being convergent to constitute revoluble wedge surfaces, the adjacent terminals of the said central elements being separated, and an ejecting device disposed on the shaft at the said outlet between the said terminals.

HERB/IAN J. PIEPGRAS.

amies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, ZD. C. 

